Cyberattack on the University of the Federal Armed Forces Munich

The Bundeswehr University in Munich has been battling a cyber attack for three weeks. "According to the current state of knowledge, the attackers have gained access to a central IT service of the data center," confirmed a spokesperson for the Bundeswehr's Cyber and Information Space Command (CIR) on Thursday evening at the request of heise online. The CIR Command is responsible for defending the Bundeswehr against digital threats, among other things. During the course of the day, there had already been corresponding reports on social media and in the Handelsblatt newspaper. The attack was detected on January 23, according to the CIR spokesperson. "The computer center of the Bundeswehr University in Munich is currently working at full speed to analyze and mitigate the effects." In other words, it is not yet clear to what extent the university's infrastructure has actually been compromised. In any case, only the structures within the Bundeswehr University, which are separate from those of the Bundeswehr itself, are affected.

The university in Munich is the second university belonging to the Bundeswehr alongside the Helmut Schmidt University in Hamburg. In the courses of study at the university at the former Neubiberg airbase, members of the Bundeswehr can complete courses such as a bachelor's degree in computer science and a master's degree in cyber security, as well as intelligence and security studies. Some of the students are destined for employment with the Federal Intelligence Service or are already working there.

"Those potentially affected have been informed in detail about this incident," said the CIR Command spokesperson. The attack did not result in any restrictions, and no data deletion or "unauthorized encryption" is currently known. The spokesperson did not say whether internal data had been leaked. Handelsblatt reported that personal data of students and lecturers at the university were potentially affected, including sensitive data such as bank account details and cell phone numbers.

In its research and teaching activities, the University of the Federal Armed Forces works closely with other bodies within the remit of the Federal Ministry of Defense. A cooperation between the university and the Cyber Innovation Hub (CIHbw) has just been announced. The small innovation unit, which works outside of the normal Bundeswehr structures on challenges posed by digitalization such as experimental drone defence or a meta-drone operating system and is also dedicated to conceptual issues such as the role of Software Defined Defence, will work more closely with members of the university. According to a statement by University President Eva-Maria Kern, the aim is for students and researchers at the university to "develop innovative solutions for the Bundeswehr" together with the Cyber Innovation Hub.

(akn)